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Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal will lead a team of senior Indian officials to Washington starting May 16 for discussions with their US counterparts on the proposed bilateral trade agreement (BTA), an official said
Goyal is expected to hold meetings with US Trade Representative (USTR) Jamieson Greer and US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick during his visit.
The four-day talks come against the backdrop of both countries exploring the possibility of an interim trade arrangement in goods to secure “early mutual wins” ahead of finalising the first phase of the trade agreement by fall (September-October) this year.
Through these discussions, officials from New Delhi and Washington aim to take advantage of the 90-day tariff pause window to advance the talks.
The US has suspended the additional 26 per cent tariffs on India till July 9. It was announced on April 2 to bridge the widening trade deficit.
However, the 10 per cent baseline tariff imposed on the countries will continue to remain in place.
To give impetus to the talks, India’s Chief Negotiator for BTA Rajesh Agrawal, special secretary in the Department of Commerce, and Assistant US Trade Representative for South and Central Asia Brendan Lynch had last month held three-day talks in Washington.
